In a year that has seen fat narratives flourishโfirst Dietland,then Dumplinโ, then Shrillโfat folks are enjoying the rarefied air of seeing themselves represented on screen, in stunningly powerful ways. While we still have quite a ways to go, the momentum is hard to deny, despite a lifetime of disappointment in the media. This is where Jen Ponton and Queens of Daytime comes inโฆย
Now, actor-writer Jen Ponton adds her story to the mix! Many of you might remember her as Rubi from Calliope House in Dietland; sheโs also guested on shows like 30 Rock, The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, Deadbeat, and Law & Order: SVU. In 2016, her independent film Love on the Run starred her as Franny, a dreamy, plus-size ingenue looking for her Prince Charming. Just so you know, that your girl has been putting in that work!ย
โI didnโt give myself credit for a really long time,โ says Jen. โI didnโt think I could write. Here I was, carrying around so much doubt about the worthiness of my stories.โ She overcame that in 2015, when she wrote her first featureโand never looked back.
Now, Jen has over six television concepts in development, as well as two feature films, and, she says, โThereโs definitely more to come. Iโm just getting started!โย In 2018, Jen Ponton teamed up with Emmy-winner Louise Shaffer, iconic leading lady of soap operas Ryanโs Hope and Search For Tomorrow. As one of the early artists of the genre, Louise knew that there was a story to be told.
A mutual friend introduced them, and Queens of Daytime was bornโa story set in the live soap operas of 1958, starring fat heroine Addy (Ponton) as a newly-minted producer of a floundering soap opera.
Behind the Scenes with Jen Ponton in Queens of Daytime
The story details the deep social issues that female writers and producers were able to address, under the mostly absent scrutiny of their male superiors. Far from entertainment executives, these men worked for detergent companiesโ โsoap operasโ were essentially an hour-long commercial.
โThatโs the future that I want to help create. Fat girls telling stories that arenโt about being fat girls.โ Jen Ponton
To assist in making this show a reality, fellow plus-size producer Jackie Schwartz came onboard. โEven before I met Jen, I knew I wanted to work with her,โ Schwartz says. โEveryone Iโd met within the fat activism community said how much they loved her.โ
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When they met in-person, Jackie knew she wanted to be a part of the project.
โJen was a kindred spirit. She had experienced what it was like to be a marginalized person within our industry. Sheโd been told by numerous people that if she didnโt lose weight, she wouldnโt get a job. But there she was, in some of my favorite shows on television!โ
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An Immediate Connection
Jackie is very optimistic about what lies ahead.
โWhatโs so incredible about Queens of Daytime is that, in so many ways, itโs about people like Jen and me. Women who were toldโbased on our looks, gender, identityโthat we couldnโt do the same things as everyone else.
That weโd be nothing more than we were. Yet weโve defied expectations in every way, and now weโve created something to represent that.โ
Louise, too, was bullied and marginalized for being a larger woman in a ruthlessly sizeist time. Like many women have experienced time and again, she aged out of soap opera roles and could no longer find work.
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For her, it was important that Addy be a stately, refined character, deeply confident and a true โSouthern lady.โ For Ponton, that meant crinoline petticoats, pearls, and, โThe most beautiful doll-red lip. Our makeup artist was incredible, I donโt even think I could recreate it.โ
You can watch Queens of Daytime Now, on YouTube.com!
While these high-feminine expectations are oppressive, decades-old institutions, theyโre also archetypes that fat women have been excluded from for just as long. Often painted as frumpy, sexless, plain characters, it was important to Jen that Addy be the heightened, 1950s ideal.
Despite the amount of care that has gone into Addyโs look and demeanor, Jackie expresses thatโThe show isnโt about her size. There is something so provocative about having a plus-size lead and not talking about her body.โย
Queens of Daytime is now streaming on YouTube!
This series is produced in association with Troma Entertainment and Besties Make Movies. Queens of Daytime is produced by Jackie Schwartz, Marzy Hart, and Jen Ponton. You should also know that this series is directed by Lily-Hayes Kaufman with cinematography by Meg Kettell.
Will you be tuning in to watch? Let us know what you think about this series, the age of the plus size heroine and what shows YOU want to see!ย
